‘Destiny 2 servers are not available’ error explained for The Final Shape

Grinding in Destiny 2 is nearly Sisyphean, but joining The Final Shape’s login queues may be just as grueling. Errors such as “Destiny 2 servers are not available” will put a halt to any activity you expected to do.

Destiny 2 expansion drops are usually marked by server queues, and with the importance and excitement revolving around The Final Shape, it’s not entirely surprising that players are stuck at the “servers are not available” message—though the usual error code is that “Destiny 2 servers are temporarily at capacity.”

Here’s why the Destiny 2 servers aren’t available and what that error message may mean in The Final Shape.

What does the “Destiny 2 servers are not available” error mean?

The “Destiny 2 servers are not available” message seems to be the new error code heading into The Final Shape. This indicates you can’t log in right now due to server issues, likely related to the pre-expansion congestion.

The new “Destiny 2 servers are not available” message appears with a red border (though it doesn’t have any Deepsight) and usually appears right after the usual “the Destiny 2 servers are being throttled” message, which indicates a server queue.

To make the issues worse, Destiny 2 is also undergoing background maintenance as part of the release of The Final Shape. This can impact players’ ability to log into the game, though Bungie’s support account says the studio is “investigating.”

With so many guardians trying to dive in at the same time, there’s extra strain on the servers, which translates to a myriad of error codes. The Final Shape’s preload also allowed all players to be ready to join at the same time, so guardians all over the world can be met with that error code when trying to boot up Destiny 2.

How to fix the “Destiny 2 servers are not available” error message in The Final Shape?

There doesn’t seem to be one single surefire way to stop the “Destiny 2 servers are not available” message. Instead, the issue seems to be on Bungie’s end. While Update 8.0.0.1 has officially rolled out (according to BungieHelp), numerous players are still stuck waiting to log in.

What worked for me was closing the game and opening it back up, which placed me straight into the game’s character select screen. This solution worked for myself and a clanmate, though we play on a lower-population server. Other clanmates of ours haven’t had the same success, however, so the efficiency of this method may vary.

Since the error asks players to “dismiss this message to try again,” there isn’t much to do other than to keep trying. Background maintenance seems to be scheduled until 2pm CT, so players should stay tuned to Bungie’s official communications through its BungieHelp or Destiny2Team accounts, or by using the fan-made bungiehelp.org website.